Operations. Trained crews for bombardment operations, Jan-Dec 1941. Patrolled the coast searching for enemy submarines after the Japanese attack on Hawaii on 7 Dec. Between Jan and Oct 1942, trained crews for overseas duty. All of the group's World War II combat operations occurred in the Mediterranean Theater, where it flew close air support and interdiction missions. Between Dec 1942 and May 1943, flew low-level missions in North Africa. When Axis forces broke through at Kasserine Pass in Feb 1943, the group flew eleven missions in one day against advancing enemy armored columns, earning a Distinguished Unit Citation (DUC). During the next two months, it trained for medium-level bombardment missions. In Jun 1943, the group took part in the reduction of Pantelleria and Lampedusa islands in the Mediterranean Sea, and the next month it supported the Allied invasion of Sicily. In Aug it bombed German evacuation beaches near Messina, and in Sep the group supported the British Eighth Army as it invaded the Italian mainland. From Sep 1943 through Jun 1944, the group supported the Allied advance on Rome. After Jun 1944, it also flew numerous night intruder missions. Supported the invasion of southern France in Aug. From Sep 1944 through Apr 1945, the group attacked German communications in northern Italy. It earned a second DUC for 60 consecutive hours of operation against enemy transportation targets in the Po Valley to prevent the organized withdrawal of German forces in Apr. After returning to the United States in Jul 1945, trained in a series of maneuvers for light bombardment operations until inactivation in Oct 1949. Between Mar 1951 and Jun 1952, trained for night tactical operations. A few months after moving to England that year, the group ceased operations and remained a paper organization until inactivation again in 1955. Trained USAF and Allied pilots after activation in Dec 1991, using various types of trainer aircraft.